The Hershey Bears close out a franchise-record 10-game road trip tonight in upstate New York with their first match of a home-and-home set this weekend against the Utica Comets.
Hershey Bears (39-16-6-1) at Utica Comets (24-30-5-2)
March 29, 2025 | 7 p.m. | Adirondack Bank Center
Referees: Jim Curtin (22), Bobby Jo Love (51)
Linespersons: Anthony Lapointe (58), Antoine Bujold-Roux (20)
Broadcast Information
Voice of the Bears, Zack Fisch, and Bears media specialist Jesse Liebman on the call
TELEVISION: Antenna TV (WPMT FOX 43.2, Xfinity Ch. 247 and 1178, Verizon FiOS Ch. 463, Blue Ridge Ephrata Ch. 91, and Blue Ridge Newberry/Duncannon Ch. 88)
RADIO: WFVY 100.1 FM, Fox Sports 1460-AM, Capitals Radio
WATCH LIVE: AHLTV on FloHockey
LISTEN LIVE: Fox Sports AM-1460 Stream, Caps Radio 24/7
Radio pre-game coverage starts at 6:30 p.m.; Television coverage starts at 7 p.m.
LAST TIME OUT:
The Bears raced out to a 3-0 lead against the Bridgeport Islanders in the first period on Wednesday and came away with a 4-1 victory, as Pierrick Dube scored twice, Hendrix Lapierre dished out three assists, and Garin Bjorklund picked up the win with 26 saves in his AHL debut for Hershey. Utica is coming off a 1-0 loss at Syracuse last night, as Brandon Halverson stopped all 20 Comets shots, while Conor Geekie netted the lone goal at 19:39 of the second period for the Crunch.
PLAYOFF PICTURE:
Hershey was the first team in the Atlantic Division to clinch a playoff berth, and has since been joined by Charlotte and Wilkes-Barre/Scranton; the club's Magic Number to lock up a second consecutive division title sits at 16 points. Utica is in last place in the seven-team North Division, and has a Magic Number of 37 to qualify for the postseason.
AT THE END OF THE ROAD:
Nine games into Hershey's franchise-record 10-game road trip, the club has posted a 6-1-1-1 record to earn 14 of a possible 18 points. Hershey has outscored its opponents 34-20 during that stretch, with Hendrix Lapierre and Chase Priskie tied for the team scoring lead with a goal and nine assists apiece. The Bears have also outshot their opponents 272-234, with both Pierrick Dube and Ivan Miroshnichenko leading the way with 29 shots on goal. From a special teams perspective, Hershey's power play has operated at a 28.57% rate (6-for-21) while the penalty kill has worked at a 80.95% clip (17-for-21).
ROAD WARRIORS:
This season the Bears have been the best road team in the league, owning a .781 road points percentage on the strength of an 22-4-5-1 record away from GIANT Center. Hershey needs to win all four of its remaining road contests to match the franchise mark for road victories in a season (26, 2009-10) and earn three out of an available eight points to guarantee the club will finish the season by matching the club record for road points percentage (.736, 2023-24).
CURBING THE COMETS:
This weekend's pair of games against Utica mark the only time the Bears and Comets face each other this season. Despite claiming the Macgregor Kilpatrick Trophy last season as the top team in the AHL, Hershey failed to earn a win in its two contests for the 2023-24 campaign against Utica (0-1-0-1), marking the first time the Bears failed to get a victory in a season series against the Comets. Hershey's last win against Utica came in the home opener for the 2022-23 season, a 3-1 win over the Comets on Oct. 15, 2022, and its last road win against Utica came in a 4-0 win on Feb. 25, 2022. Utica began the current season 0-8-0-1 before its NHL affiliate - the New Jersey Devils - relieved Kevin Dineen of his head coaching duties and appointed assistant coach Ryan Parent as interim head coach, and the Comets have gone 24-22-5-1 since the change. The Bears completed one trade with Utica this season, sending Dmitry Osipov to the Comets for Jace Isley on Nov. 29.
BEARS BITES:
Hunter Shepard's 22 wins are tied for fourth among goaltenders...Ethan Bear is tied for sixth in defensive scoring with 42 points and is tied for the lead among all skaters in plus/minus at +33...Matt Strome's next point will mark the 100th of his pro career...Spencer Smallman is one assist away from his 100th pro assist...Bears head coach Todd Nelson's next win will allow him to pass Don Penniston (136 wins) for sole possession of seventh on the franchise list for wins by a head coach...The Bears have the second-fewest penalty minutes per game and the fewest in the Eastern Conference (10.37)...Hershey's 15 wins when leading after two periods (15-0-2-0) is tied with Rochester for the most in the AHL.
ON THIS DATE:
March 29, 1972 - The Bears honored one of the biggest legends in franchise history as the club celebrated Mike Nykoluk Night in front of an overflow crowd of 7,486 at Hershey Sports Arena in a pregame ceremony before taking on the Rochester Americans in the penultimate home contest of the 1971-72 campaign, Nykoluk's final season as a player. Nykoluk was showered with gifts, including a bright-red Oldsmobile Cutlass, while head coach Frank Mathers made the announcement that Nykoluk's No. 8 would be the first sweater number to be retired at the conclusion of the season in honor of Hershey's longtime captain, a two-time Calder Cup champion with Hershey, the franchise's all-time leading scorer with 808 points, and the winner of the 1966-67 Les Cunningham Award as the AHL's MVP. As for the game itself, Jean-Guy Lagace paced Hershey by setting up three goals and scoring the tying goal midway through the third period as the Bears tied the Amerks 4-4 and clinched a berth in the 1972 Calder Cup Playoffs.
 |
 |
 |
|
 |
 |
vs
